Am I a candidate for a Middle Ear Implant?

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driver06

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Hi everyone,


Basically, I have a severe hearing loss in both ears, and have worn hearing aids with success all my life, despite having narrow ear canals.... I have had no hearing loss- hearing tests show my hearing levels to be stable.

For the last 6 months, I have been unable to hear out of my left ear due to having a narrow, twisty ear that gets blocked with the slightest of wax/fluid etc. I am also full of allergies such as allergic rhinitis, uticaria, hayfever, congestion etc all of which do not help my narrow ear canals! :P

No matter how many new ear moulds and new hearing aids that I get, I cannot hear out of my left ear UNLESS I pull my ear up... sound cannot get into my ear due to the narrow twisty ear canal! And I'm having constant feedback due to the conductive blockage..... can't stop it either.

I have 62% speech discrimination without lip-reading and 90-100% speech discrimination with lip-reading.

What worries me is that I have a reverse slope hearing loss- it's 60db in high frequencies without hearing aid, going down to 75-80db in mid frequencies and nearing 90db in low frequencies....

I'm not deaf enough for a cochlear implant and I can't wear a hearing aid...so can I be a candidate for a middle ear implant?
 
Never heard of middle ear implant, sorry they are full of bones.

And its your first post? Interesting!
 
Been having a lot of problems with my ear so wanted to reach out to others and gain some advice & meet everybody!! :) Xx
 
It's for SSNHL. From your descriptions, it sounds like you might have conductive loss.

How about BAHA?
 
thank you for the link it was extremely helpful! to clarify- I was born with a severe SSNHL, but I am now also experiencing conductive loss :) xxx
 
driver06 said:
thank you for the link it was extremely helpful! to clarify- I was born with a severe SSNHL, but I am now also experiencing conductive loss :) xxx[/QUO

my both middle ears' nerves are completed damaged by birth and they are impossible to fixed. The doctor suggested to have my ears to fixed by accuptured with the long thin needle or the cochlear implant to repair my hearing loss. i refused it to have those to fix my ears. i m proud to be deaf as normal from the birth. i am happy with my life with two jobs for prolonged years.
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Moondancer said:
driver06 said:
thank you for the link it was extremely helpful! to clarify- I was born with a severe SSNHL, but I am now also experiencing conductive loss :) xxx[/QUO

my both middle ears' nerves are completed damaged by birth and they are impossible to fixed. The doctor suggested to have my ears to fixed by accuptured with the long thin needle or the cochlear implant to repair my hearing loss. i refused it to have those to fix my ears. i m proud to be deaf as normal from the birth. i am happy with my life with two jobs for prolonged years.
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Lucky decision, since CI won't work if the nerves themselves are damaged.
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I actually have a friend of mine that just had the middle ear implant done, she LOVES it, and swears by it. They do free consultations, so the worst thing that you can do is set up an appointment and see! It's SUPER expensive though, you're talking thousands of thousands of dollars, and insurance companies do NOT cover it. They don't even cover a portion. She's on this forum ( been away for a week or two ) I'll see if I can get the information from her and I'll get back to you. Like I said though, she loves it.... you might want to check it out, good luck to you!
 
Mewtilation said:
I actually have a friend of mine that just had the middle ear implant done, she LOVES it, and swears by it. They do free consultations, so the worst thing that you can do is set up an appointment and see! It's SUPER expensive though, you're talking thousands of thousands of dollars, and insurance companies do NOT cover it. They don't even cover a portion. She's on this forum ( been away for a week or two ) I'll see if I can get the information from her and I'll get back to you. Like I said though, she loves it.... you might want to check it out, good luck to you!
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That would be brilliant please!!! I would love some feedback on this! I live in the UK by the way, so can hopefully get the operation on the NHS.

Xxx
 
driver06 said:
That would be brilliant please!!! I would love some feedback on this! I live in the UK by the way, so can hopefully get the operation on the NHS.

Xxx
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NHS do not do the middle ear implant unless there is EXTREME circumstances and I mean EXTREME!! Very very few people have had them on the NHS.

They'll offer you a BAHA intenso (sp?) or BAHA Cordelle II.

NHS seem not to care if you can hear out of one ear only, they'll just say wait......which is unfortunate.

From my understanding, there has only been one adult to get the MEI on the NHS and she was on the news earlier this year.
 
NaidaUP said:
NHS do not do the middle ear implant unless there is EXTREME circumstances and I mean EXTREME!! Very very few people have had them on the NHS.

They'll offer you a BAHA intenso (sp?) or BAHA Cordelle II.

NHS seem not to care if you can hear out of one ear only, they'll just say wait......which is unfortunate.

From my understanding, there has only been one adult to get the MEI on the NHS and she was on the news earlier this year.
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Good.So it should be.The overwhelming majority of dhh folks can benifit from traditional devices(hearing aids/CIs etc) There really isn't a desperate hole needing to be filled..............
 
driver06 said:
That would be brilliant please!!! I would love some feedback on this! I live in the UK by the way, so can hopefully get the operation on the NHS.

Xxx
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Okay, Phoenyx says that she got hers through Esteem. Here is the site link. Esteem The Hearing Implant Like I said, she swears by it and is in love with it. That of course is an American site, not sure what the UK would be or what's offered there, but at least this link will tell you about it a bit. But as she said, it's very expensive, and insurance doesn't cover it. :(
 
Also, recovery time was very fast, she was out of the hospital the same day of the operation. You have to wait a few weeks to have it turned on though. She's going to get her second done in a few weeks, as they prefer to do one at a time. Recovery time before they're turned on is around 6 to 8 weeks, if you can make it that long. You would just have to use a H.A. in your other ear while the one healed. Then the same for the other side if you went for two. :)
 
I guess the most important question-
exactly what condition do YOU have: SN or Bone conduction?
A Cochlear Implant won't help if you have bone conduction.
Your ENT doctor will have to Investigate your ears-and go from there-which is required.
 
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